Hawkeye cross-country’s Nathan Mylenek qualifies for NCAAs
Nathan Mylenek qualified for NCAAs after a third-place finish at regionals.
FILE – Iowa runner Nathan Mylenek competes during the distance medley during a track meet in the Iowa Recreation Building on Friday, Jan. 27, 2017.
November 12, 2018
The Hawkeye cross-country team’s season may be over, but Nathan Mylenek’s isn’t.
He placed third in the 10,000 meters (30:55.2) at the NCAA regional at Bradley. His finish was the best by an Iowa harrier since Micah VanDenend won the race in 2006.
“What a performance by Nathan Mylenek, so proud of him,” Iowa head coach Randy Hasenbank said in a release. “This is a huge accomplishment for him and our program. The guy has a lot of confidence and is a competitor in every sense of the word. It has been his goal for the season to get in that national meet. He was dialed in and very determined.”
Karson Sommer and Daniel Murphy also placed top 50 for the Hawkeyes. Sommer finished 35th (31:47.9), and Murphy placed 47th (32:07.4).
The Iowa men placed seventh at the meet, the Hawkeyes’ best finish since 2014.
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On the women’s side, Andrea Shine finished 31st (21:23.2) in the 6K to close out what has been an impressive career for the Black and Gold.
“Shine put the finishing touches on a great career,” Hasenbank said in a release. “Just tracking her progress from freshman year to this point, the improvement has been amazing. She did not have her best day today, but I am very proud of her regardless. Her contribution to the program means a lot. In addition to her running skills, she showed tremendous growth as a leader this year. She turned into a fearless competitor, and this gives our women a lot of confidence.”
Anna Hostetler (21:37.0) and Megan Schott (21:37.2) followed Shine, finishing 54th and 55th. The Iowa women finished 12th.
“It was a difficult day overall,” Hasenbank said in a release. “Not the result we wanted. We did have a young lineup, and they got some seasoning today. The experience will propel them and serve as good motivation. I think they also walk away with a great appreciation of just how many great runners and teams are in the region.”
